Important health care enrollment deadlines are looming for those in the U.S. military community. Don’t miss these health care coverage deadlines listed below.
Tricare open season
Tuesday, Dec. 9: The Tricare open season ends at midnight Eastern Standard Time. Beneficiaries can make changes to their Tricare health care plan, such as switching from Tricare Prime to Tricare Select. Visit tricare.mil/openseason to compare costs and plans and enroll. Online enrollment is also available through the Beneficiary Web Enrollment portal at milconnect.dmdc.osd.mil.
If beneficiaries don’t make changes now, the next chance is open season next year or a qualifying life event such as a birth.
This open season also includes a new option for beneficiaries in the Atlanta, Georgia, and Tampa, Florida, metropolitan areas through a demonstration project that provides a Tricare Prime option that doesn’t require referrals to in-network specialists. Find more details below.
The new coverage or changes in coverage made during open season for Tricare and other federal programs take effect Jan. 1, 2026.
Beneficiaries can check if their information is up to date in the Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System online at tricare.mil.deers.
Those who are satisfied with their health care plan don’t need to take action.
Tricare open season applies to those currently enrolled in or eligible for Tricare Prime, Tricare Prime Remote, U.S. Family Health Plan, Tricare Prime Demonstration Project, Tricare Prime Overseas, Tricare Prime Remote Overseas, Tricare Select and Tricare Select Overseas.
The open season doesn’t apply to individual active-duty service members or beneficiaries enrolled in Tricare for Life, where coverage is automatic for those who have Medicare Part A and Part B.
Those eligible for the premium-based plans — Tricare Reserve Select, Tricare Retired Reserve and Tricare Young Adult — can purchase the plans at any time of the year.
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Dental, vision and tax-saving accounts
Monday, Dec. 8: The Federal Benefits Open Season ends at 11:59 p.m. Eastern Standard Time. Those eligible in the military community can enroll in dental coverage and vision coverage through the Federal Employees Dental and Vision Insurance Program, or FEDVIP. Visit www.benefeds.gov for more information and to enroll. This open season ends a day earlier than the Tricare open season.
Monday, Dec. 8: As part of the Federal Benefits Open Season, service members can enroll in tax-savings accounts: a health care flexible spending account and a dependent care flexible spending account. These pre-tax accounts allow troops to set aside up to $3,400 in 2026 to pay for health care costs that Tricare doesn’t cover. Dependent care flexible spending accounts help defray the costs of child care and other dependent care. The Internal Revenue Service allows individuals to set aside up to $7,500 per year for dependent care costs if they are married and file a joint tax return or if they file as single or head of household. Visit fsafeds.gov for more information and to enroll.
Previous participation in these flexible spending programs doesn’t automatically carry over, meaning individuals must must enroll each year.
New Tricare Prime demo starts in 2026
Roughly 150,000 Tricare beneficiaries living in the Atlanta, Georgia, and Tampa, Florida, metropolitan areas will have a new Tricare Prime option next year through a demonstration project being conducted by the Defense Health Agency.
Those interested must enroll during open season. For more information and to enroll, visit enrolltricare.com, or call 877-996-9333 from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Eastern Standard Time, Monday through Friday. Those eligible can also enroll through the web enrollment portal at milconnect.dmdc.osd.mil by searching for Tricare Prime demo.
Information was not available about how many beneficiaries have signed up to date for the demonstration project.
CareSource Military and Veterans Co., of Dayton, Ohio, will run three-year demonstration projects for the two areas, under contracts worth a combined total of $110 million.
Those eligible are active-duty family members; family members of activated National Guard or Reserve members; retirees, their family members or survivors who aren’t eligible for Medicare; and those enrolled in the Transitional Compensation Program.
A key benefit for those enrolled in Tricare Prime through this project is that they won’t be required to get referrals for in-network specialty care, as is normally required in Tricare Prime.
“We’ve received positive feedback from beneficiaries enrolling in the Tricare Prime demo … especially regarding their ability to see in-network specialists without referrals,” CareSource officials said in a statement to Military Times. “Many beneficiaries also indicated that maintaining their providers and comprehensive coverage was an important factor in their decision.”
For the first year of the demonstration project, enrollment fees are waived for retirees, their family members and survivors. Active-duty service members, their family members and transitional survivors don’t pay Tricare Prime enrollment fees.
While those in Tricare Select currently don’t have to get referrals, they could choose to switch to the Tricare Prime demo option which doesn’t require referrals and also provides the additional benefit of case management and care coordination for those who need it.
CareSource will help Tricare families navigate finding a provider, getting an appointment and providing more hands-on personal support.
CareSource Military and Veterans is part of CareSource, a national nonprofit managed care organization with more than 2 million members.
Karen has covered military families, quality of life and consumer issues for Military Times for more than 30 years, and is co-author of a chapter on media coverage of military families in the book “A Battle Plan for Supporting Military Families.” She previously worked for newspapers in Guam, Norfolk, Jacksonville, Fla., and Athens, Ga.
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